Crafting, fun and friendship

Wednesday, 25 November 2015

Yep, another week has whizzy-ma-jigged by.....there hasn't been much time for crafting. This isn't good as I've got a couple of commissions to do...have really got to knuckle down and get on with it now :-D

My son Rhys is part of a Secret Santa in his uni flat and asked me to make a tote for his giftee...apparently she's mad about dogs and I still had some Scottie fabric kicking around.

Not sure about the grey/roses fabric bottom left, I'm not going to use that now. I'll fancy up the pockets with some lace and pretty stuff instead!

I've been down to see my dad as well and took some knitting to do - this is for a Christmas present too.....

Yep, it's another Hooter!! I haven't knitted one for AGES and have really enjoyed it. I'm showing the pattern but don't actually need it anymore....I've made so many, I know the instructions off by heart :-) There's some of that funky brown tinsel yarn left which I'm going to use to make a pom pom and decorate a knitted russet wool beanie....it'll be a good combo.

Last Friday, my band played at the switch on of the Christmas lights in Marlborough. There was a stage by the side of us and we wondered why there were so many police around. There were some surprise guests who came to sing and then turn on the lights....

Marlborough High St was buzzing.....

The surprise was Scouting for Girls (a popular Indie band for those non-UK amongst you!) They played a 20 minute set while their Christmas video was being shot and then did a reprise after they'd turned on the lights. We were due to play after them which makes them our Support Act in effect!!! ;-) The two red jackets you can see bottom right are two players having a bop!

And then Phoenix played for nearly an hour. We must be dangerous as they put us in a cage and wouldn't let anyone out :-) It was a fun evening to be part of but b%&^*y freezing....I had 4 layers on!

So life is slightly less frenetic this coming week....watch out Sewing Machine, it's going to be a rough ride :-)

Sending out love, hugs and general smoochiness to you all....let's try and counteract all the bad stuff that seems to be dominating the news.

Wednesday, 18 November 2015

Win Or Lose, Sink Or SwimOne Thing Is Certain We'll Never Give InSide By Side, Hand In HandWe All Stand Together

(The Frog Chorus - Paul McCartney)

Apt lyrics, don't you think? I wanted to join in with the expressions of solidarity around the world; people unified against the horrors that unfolded in Paris, Beirut and Lebanon.

As a reaction against the terrible news, everything on my blog today is cheery. I'm going to put these scraps of various fabrics together to make a Christmas present. I'm still on a mission to bust my stash and am doing well in reducing the fabric Everest. I still have to get supplies of things like long zips, a whole reel of 25mm white bias binding tape, fusible fleece and PVA glue....

And I'm SO enjoying knitting with this happy yarn. I saw it in Miss Lemon's Wool Shop (in Pewsey, about three miles away from me) and just had to buy it. It's chunky acrylic but is fab to knit with - it's really soft and not at all 'squeaky' as some acrylics can be. I'm just making basic beanie hats to give away to a charity; the pattern is easy so it's good for non-thinking, uncomplicated crafting of an evening :-) I love it!!

I did a bit of sewing for Lisa (Craft Garden) and she sent me this fab hare cushion as a Thank You, plus a really cheery card too. I love it so much, it's very elegant, which is a bit of a departure for me ;-)

And another unexpected surprise was this gorgeous floral arrangement sent by my niece Lynsey. I was gobsmacked when the flower lady delivered them...no particular reason, it said on the card, just thanks for being her auntie for all these years. I was bowled over by the hot in-your-face colours...just right for cheering me up in this dismal weather. How lucky am I?

And something else that was hot........

You'd think his whiskers would get singed, wouldn't you?!! Ron was very happy the day we lit the woodburner :-)

So I hope that I've managed to spread a little happiness and comfort today...we all stand together xxxxxxxxxx

Wednesday, 11 November 2015

Thank you for all the great tips on how to help the BPPV I've got..some interesting thoughts which I will investigate further. The vertigo meant I couldn't march with my band in the Remembrance Day parade, which I was very sad about. Oh well, let's hope it abates this week, eh? I'm fed up of feeling icky...

I've done quite a bit of sewing this week, but can't really show what I've made as they're for C......... presents!!

Some fun fabric combos - funky blues.....

....some of you will recognise this fabric too!!

The funky fat quarter that I got as a prezzy from Wipso and Twiglet in the summer has been cut into! That bright green object is one of those fold-up bags you keep in your handbag. These have become a bit of a running gag between Julia and myself...this was a new one from her and I made a quick sachet in which to stash it....

Getting the apple smack in the middle was luck rather than planning!!

And why did it need a cover? Because this was the original.....

Frankenweeny mutant Dog-Pig scary thing! The problem was it's 8" tall and way too big to keep at the ready in my handbag... Epic Fail, as herself commented! You wait, Julia...I'll get you back.... :-)Finally two pics that show the difference between me and my mate:My pic.....hmmmmmmm...

Whereas Julia was all JAZZ HANDS!! (Are you doing it with her? I am!!)

Love this pic.....if I scrapbooked (never gonna happen!) this would be the photo I'd choose!!Exhibitionists? Us? Whatever gave you that idea.... ;-)xxxxxxx

Wednesday, 4 November 2015

The high was most definitely seeing Shaz and Doug Silverwolf at the Crop with all the lovely peeps who attended...

What a lovely day it was, full of fun and laughter. See the previous post for all the pics and carry-ons!

The lows may involve dynamite to try and unblock my ears and cure my vertigo (BPPV). All suggestions welcome, I'm bored by it now....

Anyway, I did do some crafting as friends had their second baby boy and I was casting around for a prezzy. I knew that I'd do some personalised bunting but needed something extra.

And what did I find tucked away in a R.U.B, but a few squares of quilt-as-you-go patchwork that I featured months ago. Aha!! Halfway to a present.....I do love it when there's a happy accident :-)

I had been using a Moda charm pack, which makes co-ordinating the fabrics a piece of cake..

I didn't even bind the edges, just sewed the backing on, turned it out the right way and then zigzagged the perimeter to reinforce the quilt. Lazy but effective :-D

There...quick and easy and perfect for a baby to roll around on!

And the bunting got done too...woohoo. I love getting my buttons out - if ya know what I mean, lol :-D

Better make this a short post today as the Crop one was a mammoth epistle...but I must finish with a pic of the gorgeous tags, ATC and card given to me on Saturday:

Great Halloween colours from Dolores, Debbie and Lizzie plus a fab ATC and card from Marcie Lee. Both Lizzie and Marcie have been avid followers of WOYWW and read all our blogs but can't comment. Well girls, your support is very much appreciated. Thank you Cardarian for bringing Lizzie to the Crop, it was great to meet her and she'll be joining us on the desks today. Yay!! Hope you'll all go pay her a visit, she's a lovely lady who fitted in brilliantly.

Sunday, 1 November 2015

I think that I was slightly worried about this Crop as it was a smaller gathering than usual. Well, that was stupid huh, as it turned out to be a lovely day with more of a chance to chat! Seeing Shaz looking so well was the high point of the weekend for me - thank you for coming down, lovely gal. You did really well! Sam (Hettie) was poorly and couldn't make it, which was a shame as I was looking forward to seeing her.....

As usual there was chatting, cake (thanks Fiona for the famous Lemon Drizzle) and actually quite a bit of crafting....Heavens to Betsy :-)

The good folk of Burbage were having a Spooky quiz in the hall that evening and, after asking my permission if they could decorate the hall the previous day, did a fine job...it was very atmospheric!!

Some very spooky characters were lurking..

This made me laugh......looks like me after a bad day!!

It was great fun and added to the atmosphere :-)

The girls started arriving and quickly got down to business (they're all fooling you actually, there was lots of chat and cake at this point.....)

Way too mischievous...this was the Naughty Corner! Yes, Fiona and Lisa-Jane...YOU!

I rest my case, M'Lud!!

Margaret and Debbie managed to create some really beautiful items whilst chatting away like the great friends they are.....

Debbie was making these gorgeous flowers to adorn the mixed media hearts she does so well...they were sparklier in real life.

And Margaret was doing parchment craft...I thought this was amazing but then she showed me what she does with it...

How beautiful is this? I just couldn't get over it...so delicate in appearance. Margaret must have loads of patience as this takes quite a while to complete...so worth it though xx

Shaz!! Looking awesome in her witchy hat! I did wonder over the past month whether we'd see her at the Crop, but she is one determined woman and it was fantastic to see her doing amazingly well. Doug is perfecting his shading technique!

I love this photo! It just sums up the day for me :-D I had just told them a really rude joke though, which explains the sniggering!!!! Love you Helen and Cindy ;-)

Dolores came all the way from Kent and bought Lizzie with her....a first timer to the Crop, but she follows WOYWW every week and reads our blogs but is unable to comment. Come on Lizzie, you've got to get your blog back up and running then we can return the honour! Seriously, thanks for coming and being such a good sport. Both these lovely girls had made amazing tags...

Lizzie's.....they were really good!!

And Dolores...honestly, I loved these so much. Great pic of you as well, Dolores!

This was Lizzie's pencil collection....I could have happily walked away with these but will content myself with putting them on my Christmas list for Santa.....ooooh, those colours, they're just so tempting :-)

Kyla was looking Fab-u-lous! And was a good sport when I asked her to pose for this pic, lolol!!

I love our crafting friends...they're just wonderful :-)

Kyla commandeered the tables at the end of the hall where she was putting her quilt top, batting and backing together...I was impressed that she'd bought her iron. If I'd have known, I'd have brought my ironing pile over for her.... ;-)

A general view...it looks quiet here but that definitely wasn't the case on the day...

Dolores had bought the AWESOME quilt she's made and wanted some advice on how to square the edges properly. So we had a committee meeting and lots of thoughts were bandied about about. Can you believe this is the first big quilt Dolores has made?? It is gorgeous....

....as were her nails!! Lol....

Can I give a shout out in praise of Doug Silverwolf? He played a blinder through the day, helping us set up with my menfolk and packing up at the end of the day as well. You're a star...

It was fantastic to see Mary Anne looking so great after her recent health issues too..she was knitting a cowl in this lovely autumnal yarn and had some crochet to show me....

...with a skull pattern in! How clever is that?? I really must try to attempt some more complex crochet...it's too easy to stick with the tried and tested sometimes.

I'm not entirely sure what IS going on here, but it obviously needed two pairs of hands to do it!

Morti and David rocked up at lunchtime...gosh it was so good to see these lovely folk again..it's been too long. Morti was doing the teeniest cross stitch I've ever seen...it was miniscule...she must have amazing eyesight! And David was cross stitching away merrily as well :-)

The usual Rent-a-Crowd photo had to be taken...we were smaller in number but still had a really enjoyable day...

...but there's always one.... :-D And it's the quiet ones that are the worst, eh Fiona??Some final images from a wonderful day...

The Goth Quarter!!

Inky mitts are the sign of a great day's crafting....

Extra visitors add to the fun! My mate Helen and her mum popped in to support my fundraising stall...good to see you, lovely gals!

This made me laugh every time I needed the 'Facilities'!!But most of all, it couldn't have happened without my Bestie.....

Love ya :-)So many thanks...to everyone who came, who did all the setting up and unloading of cars (I've had real problems with vertigo and balance recently) and especially who supported my fundraising stall. The profits from your donations for all that craft stuff together with a small amount of subs money left over amounted to £200, which is astonishing. THANK YOU!!WOYWW - just wonderful....... xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx